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The Soul of the Egyptians
In every religion, the concept of the soul is one of the most important aspects of the moral code that goes with each religion. Egyptian mythology is no exception to this. There are two major parts of the soul: The Ka, and the Ba (Alchin, 2015). When the two fuse together they form the Akh. Each part plays a pivotal role and is absolutely crucial to understanding the afterlife.
The Ka
The Ka is the main part of the soul. It is the life force of a person and lives on after the person has died. The Ka is also known as a person’s double (Ikram, 2003). One way to understand the Ka is to liken it to a ghost. The Ka is directly tied to a person’s heart and name. The spiritual heart, or the Ib, is the source of good and evil in a person. The Ib manifests itself in the Ka during the judgement of the soul. The Egyptians believed that death occurs when the Ka leaves the body (Alchin, 2015).
The Ba
The Ba is the other half of the soul. According to Alchin (2015), “The Ba was the roaming physical essence of the soul”. In order for the soul to go under judgement, the Ba had to be reunited with the Ka. The Ba would roam the world in search of the “Eternal House” of the Ka or the tomb. When this occurred, the Akhu emerged. The Akhu was a divine spark that allowed the soul to continue onto judgement and enter the afterlife. However, if the Ka and the Ba were not united, then a “second-death” would occur. A “second-death” happened if the Khat, or physical body, was not buried correctly or the soul was forgotten before it could enter the afterlife. This fate was one of the most feared by the Egyptians, because the afterlife is more important to them then their actual life. It meant that there Ka had died, and their Ba was forced to roam the world forever, forgotten (Alchin, 2015).
In every religion, the concept of the soul is one of the most important aspects of the moral code that goes with each religion. Egyptian mythology is no exception to this. There are two major parts of the soul: The Ka, and the Ba (Alchin, 2015). When the two fuse together they form the Akh. Each part plays a pivotal role and is absolutely crucial to understanding the afterlife.
The Ka
The Ka is the main part of the soul. It is the life force of a person and lives on after the person has died. The Ka is also known as a person’s double (Ikram, 2003). One way to understand the Ka is to liken it to a ghost. The Ka is directly tied to a person’s heart and name. The spiritual heart, or the Ib, is the source of good and evil in a person. The Ib manifests itself in the Ka during the judgement of the soul. The Egyptians believed that death occurs when the Ka leaves the body (Alchin, 2015).
The Ba
The Ba is the other half of the soul. According to Alchin (2015), “The Ba was the roaming physical essence of the soul”. In order for the soul to go under judgement, the Ba had to be reunited with the Ka. The Ba would roam the world in search of the “Eternal House” of the Ka or the tomb. When this occurred, the Akhu emerged. The Akhu was a divine spark that allowed the soul to continue onto judgement and enter the afterlife. However, if the Ka and the Ba were not united, then a “second-death” would occur. A “second-death” happened if the Khat, or physical body, was not buried correctly or the soul was forgotten before it could enter the afterlife. This fate was one of the most feared by the Egyptians, because the afterlife is more important to them then their actual life. It meant that there Ka had died, and their Ba was forced to roam the world forever, forgotten (Alchin, 2015).